No need for animal dissection

Published 5:16 pm, Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Kudos to Connecticut legislators for passing a law allowing students to opt out of animal dissection and be provided with humane alternatives. This crude exercise has no place in 21st century classrooms. As a college biology teacher, I know that students learn better when they use modern and humane non-animal methods.

Dozens of independent, peer-reviewed studies have shown that students taught biology using methods like virtual dissection software do better on exams, learn faster and are more confident in the material than their peers who cut up animals. In my own classes, I use only non-animal teaching methods and have found the same thing.

Further, a growing majority of students oppose animal testing and as a result find dissection upsetting and are unable to learn the requisite material. Replacing crude dissections with humane learning methods creates a more inclusive learning environment that does not risk alienating or traumatizing anyone.